Having a feed. (Eating pics)

[Gio]

These are from a month ago. I found some appropriately sized rabbits and decided to give them a go. Sniper is 3 years old and in lean condition.

My plan will be to continue with the feeding style I have been. Long periods between larger meals, some small prey at a little bit more frequent intervals, and then some down time in the winter.

These are not really good photos, yet they have a somewhat cool look to them with the blue light on behind the glass.






I like this one even though there is a lot of reflection off the glass.



There was only a slight bulge after this larger meal.


It's been a month since he has eaten, and I'm probably going to wait another week before I attempt again. I may do quail, but I want him to be crawling the cage a bit before he eats again.

Prior to this, he struck at me when I opened the cage so I knew he was good and hungry.

[Gerardo]

Looking great

[bcr229]

Nice. Keep some rats around too. My big female took a f/t one pound rabbit every four weeks monthly for quite a while, then refused on her regular feeding day but still exhibited hunting behavior. On a whim I offered her a similar-sized jumbo rat that was also ready to go and she ripped it off the tongs.

Hopefully I can get her back onto rabbits eventually, they're cheaper and much lower fat than the jumbo rats.

[Reinz]

Gio, does Sniper have that bun pinned to the "tree"? Looks awesome!

I have artwork from the 1800's showing a Boa doing that.

[stickyalvinroll]

Nice setups

[Gio]

Nice. Keep some rats around too. My big female took a f/t one pound rabbit every four weeks monthly for quite a while, then refused on her regular feeding day but still exhibited hunting behavior. On a whim I offered her a similar-sized jumbo rat that was also ready to go and she ripped it off the tongs.

Hopefully I can get her back onto rabbits eventually, they're cheaper and much lower fat than the jumbo rats.

Oh yeah. I mix rats, quail, rabbits, probably the big 3 right there. He actually lunged out of his cage at me the day before this feed. That's a good indication of a hungry BC. It's healthy to keep them in a hunting mode. Content lazy boas don't do much and live shorter lives.


Oh and yes he used the perch to help constrict the prey.

[Billy29]

How often do you feed a adult boa?


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[Gio]

How often do you feed a adult boa?


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It really depends on the prey and prey size. I don't really have a feeding schedule. Its feast or famine, and when I feed a rabbit, I won't offer again for a month. Then when I do, it will be a much smaller prey item, either quail or a rat, but either of those will be typically smaller than what an adult would eat.

Then he may go 21 days and get a large rat, large quail, or go a bit longer and I'll give him a rabbit.

I like to make him crawl around and hunt to eat. A hungry boa is an active boa. If he becomes sedentary and content, I know he is eating more than I'd like. Boa constrictors should be lean and laterally compressed. The HUGE boas in the wild, 12-13 feet long probably weigh less than the 10 foot boas in captivity.

Metabolism in just about every living organism shortens lives. Fasting or going without food is not bad in many cases.

I believe one reason royal pythons are the longest living snakes is because they will refuse food for months, even close to a year, and then resume eating with no ill effect.

Obviously this isn't how I'd feed a neonate or juvenile snake, but with adults, sometimes less is more.

As a boa approaches adulthood, its important to know when the explosive growth has stopped, and the slow long term growth begins. They tend to store fat in their tail area, and if you are able to visually spot that, you are in a good position to keep your snake lean and healthy.